Prepaid iPhone4 / Virgin Mobile

[mommybunnyof2]

Hi,
Wanted to see if anyone on here has the Apple iPhone 4 service through Virgin Mobile. We currently use two droid phones with Virgin Mobile grandfathered in at the $25/month rate. My son is in going to need a phone next year and I was going to hand down mine to him and thinking about purchasing the iPhone. My husband recently was issued an iPhone from work (and he loves it) and he really wants me to get one as well mainly so we can coordinate schedules more easily. But wow, $550 for a phone!! I know I can't get it any cheaper monthly ($35), but that initial price, whew. And yes, I am the ultimate in frugality!! Yes, we can afford it, just convince me that I need it

 

[DawnM]

Are the iphone 4s still $550? You can buy a used one from CL or ebay. I got a used one for Straight talk from CL for me and a used one for my son from a friend who was upgrading to a 5.

Dawn

 

[MrsDoubtfire]

I was seriously considering purchasing an IPhone 4 from Virgin Mobile for DD14 as we have TMobile and IPhones are n/a on our carrier. What is holding me back is the fine print that states the IPhones purchased from VM are proprietary and can only be used by that particular carrier. I really don't know why these carriers have to do this - other than the obvious almighty buck. I'm all for choice and being able to purchase a phone and then be able to use it with any carrier - but that seems to never be an option.

 

[JB2K]

But wow, $550 for a phone!! I know I can't get it any cheaper monthly ($35), but that initial price, whew. And yes, I am the ultimate in frugality!! Yes, we can afford it, just convince me that I need it

Just do the math -- typical iPhone contract service on AT&T/Sprint/Verizon is going to cost roughly $100 a month, every month for 2 years (we're talking a total of $2400 to use the iPhone). And I haven't even included the cost of the contract phone, itself. Of course, that figure is for a stand-alone phone not attached to any "family plan" -- in that case, YMMV.

Over at Virgin Mobile, their non-subsidized iPhone costs $550 -- add that to the same two years of service costing $840 ($35 times 24 months) , and your total costs over two years would be only $1390, which is almost half!

And best of all with VM, if you decide to change your mind, you won't get hit with a nasty 3-digit termination fee.

It's truly a no-brainer, over the long haul...

 

[Bungle]

Totally agree with the previous poster. My nephew has the iphone w/ VM and loves it. We have had service with VM for years and years and have had no issue.

 

[DawnM]

With the older phones this isn't possible:

http://www.wisegeek.org/what-is-the-difference-between-gsm-and-cdma.htm

However, if you are looking at an iphone 5, I have heard they will work on anything, so you CAN do that.

With an iphone 4 however, you need to use it for the carrier it is designed for. I chose to get an ATT based iphone because the SIM allows me to use it with Straight Talk, ATT, or T-mobile lines.

For me to use ST with my ATT iphone I didn't have to unlock it. My understanding is that if you wish to use it with T-mobile, you need it unlocked, either through ATT directly or you can pay about $6 on ebay to get an unlock code.

Dawn

I was seriously considering purchasing an IPhone 4 from Virgin Mobile for DD14 as we have TMobile and IPhones are n/a on our carrier. What is holding me back is the fine print that states the IPhones purchased from VM are proprietary and can only be used by that particular carrier. I really don't know why these carriers have to do this - other than the obvious almighty buck. I'm all for choice and being able to purchase a phone and then be able to use it with any carrier - but that seems to never be an option.

 

[DawnM]

I would also add, GET AN OTTERBOX or Lifeproof case or something VERY sturdy to protect your investment.

Just do the math -- typical iPhone contract service on AT&T/Sprint/Verizon is going to cost roughly $100 a month, every month for 2 years (we're talking a total of $2400 to use the iPhone). And I haven't even included the cost of the contract phone, itself. Of course, that figure is for a stand-alone phone not attached to any "family plan" -- in that case, YMMV.

Over at Virgin Mobile, their non-subsidized iPhone costs $550 -- add that to the same two years of service costing $840 ($35 times 24 months) , and your total costs over two years would be only $1390, which is almost half!

And best of all with VM, if you decide to change your mind, you won't get hit with a nasty 3-digit termination fee.

It's truly a no-brainer, over the long haul...

 

[HM]

My son19 got the iPhone 4 from VM in August. I got a message from him last night (at college) that the button to lock the phone had stopped working and he couldn't turn off the phone. I talked to VM about it and they sent me to AppleCare. They said they'd have to talk to him on a different phone from the his iPhone, so I let him know to follow through. Don't know the outcome of this yet, but it's under warranty, so he should get some help. Apparently this is pretty common on these phones.

In the meantime, we've decided that we need to buy an Otterbox next time I see him. Although he's very careful with the phone, it looks like he needs more protection for it.

Anyway....he loves the phone. Way better than his android phone he had previously. And we're paying $30 a month for his access.

 

[timmac]

My understanding is that if you wish to use it with T-mobile, you need it unlocked, either through ATT directly or you can pay about $6 on ebay to get an unlock code.

Beyond that, I would advise against using an iPhone on t-mobile, if you care much about data. 3G won't work on t-mobile's network, and LTE 4G is all but non-existant with t-mobile. (Though their HSPA+ pseudo-4g, with other phones that support it, is pretty good)

 

[mommybunnyof2]

Thanks for all the information everyone. I didn't think we could purchase a used iPhone 4 and then use the VM service. It stinks that they won't allow you to do that. Glad to hear that others have it and haven't had any problems with it (except for the known issued noted above). My husband got both the Otterbox and the Lifeproof cases for his phone, so I'll just use one of those.
I know it's a no-brainer, just got to plunk down the $$. My tightwaddedness just gets the best of me sometimes

 

[lukenick1]

Thanks for all the information everyone. I didn't think we could purchase a used iPhone 4 and then use the VM service. It stinks that they won't allow you to do that. Glad to hear that others have it and haven't had any problems with it (except for the known issued noted above). My husband got both the Otterbox and the Lifeproof cases for his phone, so I'll just use one of those.
I know it's a no-brainer, just got to plunk down the $$. My tightwaddedness just gets the best of me sometimes

I'm feeling the exact same way.....

Both DH and I have VM Droids. That means that if we want the Iphone it would be $550x2. I just can't see it happening. That is just way too much money to spend on a cell phone.

 

[JB2K]

My tightwaddedness just gets the best of me sometimes

Since the VM iPhone is a "big-ticket" item, you might want to give Target a try -- their Credit and Debit cards will shave 5% off that price (which, in many states, would pay for the sales tax).

 

[Bungle]

Last year on black friday Target had the VM optimus for half price so you might want to wait and see what is available, then again I'm not sure if iphones ever go on sale.

 

[TrueLove's1stKiss]

I'm also grandfathered into the $25 plan with VM. I've been doing extensive research on prepaid options for the iphone and I have decided on Straight Talk, based on a couple things. For one thing the price of the phone itself from VM is too much imho, when it is tied to VM only! You can get a used 4 for a reasonable price especially if you know someone that is upgrading and just wants to sell it. My nephew is going to sell me his AT&T iphone 4 for $150 in two weeks when he upgrades to the 5. And I think I've located a 2nd one for DD15 from a family friend for the same price. My nephew has only had this phone for a couple months, they replaced his phone because his original 4 broke. So I'm getting a bargain with a pretty brand new phone! I will buy the Micro Sim from ST for $14.99. I will also buy a T-Mobile Sim if I can't find someone that uses T-mobile & just borrow their sim... this is just used to reset the phone and fix the MMS problems it does not even need to be activated from what I understand. Then I will buy the $45/month unlimited plan. This is better for me because I'm always frustrated with the spotty VM service in my area. AT&T has much better coverage here and that is what ST uses for an AT&T phone! Also in my research I have found that you really do need to be careful with how much data you use weather you use VM or ST because they will slow data way down to a halt, if you use too much. So be sure to set your phone to automatically pick up wifi if it is available and keep an eye on your data usage. Read this article for more info If you are a heavy data user than using one of the mentioned providers is NOT recommended at all! But if you are conscious of your use and/or tend to be in areas with wifi then it should be fine. Definitely talk to other Sprint/VM users in your area before you commit to VM! As mentioned it can be spotty even nonexistent in some areas (I have no service with VM on most of my 40 minute commute to & from work and no service at all at my place of employment)!

HTH!

 

[JB2K]

Last year on black friday Target had the VM optimus for half price so you might want to wait and see what is available, then again I'm not sure if iphones ever go on sale.

This will be the first year prepaid iPhones are on the U.S. market -- and Apple has a long-standing policy of not allowing retailers to discount any of their products (to maintain their "boutique" status).

 

[JB2K]

Also in my research I have found that you really do need to be careful with how much data you use weather you use VM or ST because they will slow data way down to a halt, if you use too much. So be sure to set your phone to automatically pick up wifi if it is available and keep an eye on your data usage. Read this article for more info If you are a heavy data user than using one of the mentioned providers is NOT recommended at all!

A good way for anyone to monitor their data usage is to get the free "3G Watchdog" app (from either the iTunes Store or Google Play) -- I don't even come close to hitting 2GB (or even 1GB) with daily usage on my Android.

A good rule of thumb --especially when there are data limits is NOT to watch HD movies/TV on Netflix, YouTube, etc. as well as streaming music when you''re on the road, as those are known "bandwidth killers".

 

[ceecee]

DD also has Virgin at $25 a month. Now she wants to upgrade her phone, since the one she got 14 months ago is outdated. Do any phones work with VM and will we still get the grandfathered $25 rate?

 

[crazelion]

DD also has Virgin at $25 a month. Now she wants to upgrade her phone, since the one she got 14 months ago is outdated. Do any phones work with VM and will we still get the grandfathered $25 rate?

I would check out fatwallet there was a list phones that work with the 25 dollar plan for 25 dollars for VM. It was some older 2012 ones. I think the LG Ompuisle Elite was one them.

 

[vinotinto]

We've owned 3 ipods and 3 iphones, as well as non-Apple electronics. ipods and iphones have been very unreliable, usually having issues at around 13-15 months (just after warranty expires). We are very careful with our electronics and have otterboxes, etc. Anyways, I would put the lifespan of the Apple products at around 1 to 1.25 years. So, whenever you make your calculations, keep that in mind. I would not pay $600 out of pocket for a phone that will likely have to be replaced in a little over a year. We've had iphones but we basically get substantial corporate discount that makes the reduced 2-year contracts worthwhile. Look into the reliability of other phones.

 

[Bungle]

DD also has Virgin at $25 a month. Now she wants to upgrade her phone, since the one she got 14 months ago is outdated. Do any phones work with VM and will we still get the grandfathered $25 rate?

When I upgraded I kept my same rate. When you get the new phone go online and under her account swap the phone, that way you keep the rate and her number.